Four is Eternal
by Kitty Malfoy
Summary: Romance and Angst. A love square. (Not a TRIANGLE!) Rated PG-13 for multiple suicides.


Title: Four is Eternal Author: Kitty Malfoy  
  
Rating: PG-PG-13  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing HP related, but the plot is mine - don't steal.  
  
Summary: Romance and Angst. A love square. (Not a TRIANGLE!) Rate PG-13 for multiple suicides.  
  
(*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)  
  
"Lily. Can I talk to you?" James asked, pushing his glasses higher up onto the bridge of his nose.  
  
"I'm late for Divination-" her protest died, when she saw the look on his face. "Ok, James." She said. She shot him a concerned look, but he pulled her into an empty classroom.  
  
Lily walked to the middle of the room and spun around slowly; her eyes locked on her friend as he paced back and forth in front of the door.  
  
'I have something to tell you," he blurted out, finally, "and you don't have to say anything, but I just.....I gotta get it off my chest. Or else I'll explode, ya know? - like a volcano. Like Mt. St. Helens in the united States - which can get hotter than 3,000º, which is still cooler than dragon fire-"  
  
"James!" Lily exclaimed. "You're rambling, and I'm late for class. Whatever you have to say to me, you can just say it." She said, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.  
  
James closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. "Lily, I think I love you."  
  
Lily drew back in surprise.  
  
"I KNOW I do." He said firmly, looking at her with his sincere, dark brown eyes.  
  
Lily hugged her books to her chest and looked down at her feet - letting her red hair fall over her face.  
  
"Lily?" James prodded.  
  
When she looked up, Lily's eyes were filled with tears, and her voice quavered when she spoke.  
  
"I'm so sorry, James, but I'm in love with Sirius." She ran to the door and pushed past him - out into the hallway.  
  
"But HE loves Remus!" he called after her, but she did not stop, until she reached the girls bathroom. And she stayed there until Divination was over.  
  
~*~  
  
James pulled Lily back from the group as they were all walking down to lunch.  
  
"Lily-" he started, but she interrupted him.  
  
"He may love Remus, but Remus is in love with you!" Lily snapped, "So I still have a chance." Then she glided gracefully back up to Sirius and Remus, as if nothing had ever happened. James was left behind his mouth gaping open. As he stared at Remus' retreating back, he wondered if what she had said was true.  
  
~*~  
  
The Gryffindor table watched once again in exasperation as the four friends stole secretive looks at one another, while they ate. Lily at Sirius. Sirius at Remus. Remus at James. And James at Lily. A viscious love square that they could do nothing to fix.  
  
Their sense of friendship was too strong for them to fight over each other. They prized their friendship over everything - even love.  
  
"They're just so stubborn!" Molly Brown whispered to her boyfriend, Arthur Weasley.  
  
"Don't interfere, Moll." He begged, weakly. Molly just shook her head and stood up. She walked over to the four and cleared her throat.  
  
All four jumped, and looked at her, their faces rather pink at being caught.  
  
"You guys really need to figure this out." Molly admonished, boldly.  
  
They all gave her rather fake, confused looks.  
  
"James you like Lily, but she likes Sirius. And Sirius likes Remus, but Remus likes James. Things won't be back to normal until you figure these things out!" She nodded her head in finality - satisfied that she had gotten her point across, and walked back to her seat.  
  
The Marauders looked guiltily at each other and then away.  
  
"Meet at the top of the Astronomy Tower after your last class." Sirius proposed quietly, and they all murmured their agreement.  
  
The rest of the day wore on in tense apprehension.  
  
~*~  
  
"So we are agreed that we will move on, and forget that we ever loved each other?" Lily said quietly. The wind tousled her hair, brushing it over her said face.  
  
The boys nodded, and the four shook on it. It was time to go.  
  
Remus stood looking out at the stars while the others started down the stairs.  
  
"Come on Remus!" Lily called, climbing back up the stairs.  
  
"I'll be down in a bit." He replied, pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket.  
  
"Nonsense!" Lily scoffed, poking her head out the door. "Besides I need your help with the Divination I missed."  
  
"Not right now!" he yelled turning back to face the grounds of Hogwarts.  
  
Realization dawned on Lily.  
  
"Oh my god!" she breathed, "Don't! It'll be ok; just give it time!" She stammered, helplessly. Remus smiled softly, and shook his head.  
  
"Somebody help!" she screamed down the stairs. Maybe Sirius and James where still close enough to hear.  
  
"I know it hurts, I feel it too. I might even have though of doing what you are about to do, but what would that gain? I'd never get to try again with Sirius, or see all of you, my friends."  
  
Remus handed her the paper; which she unfolded and read.  
  
'The last Will and Testament of Remus J. Lupin.'  
  
"I know you thought of doing it," Remus whispered to her. "You ARE going to. You have the same piece of parchment in your pocket."  
  
She shook her head, but against her will, her hand drew out a small piece of parchment from her robe pocket. Remus nodded knowingly, and Lily felt the tears well up in her eyes.  
  
The tower door slammed open, and Remus gave her one more, shy, smile, and then he was gone.  
  
Sirius screamed and ran to the edge - watching the boy he had sworn not to love plummet to the ground. Grabbing a crumpled piece of parchment out of his jeans, he shoved it into Lily's hand, and before either she or James could react, he was gone as well.  
  
Lily blinked back tears, and clenched her fist around the Wills of her late friends, and her own. Throwing her hair back over her should she stepped up onto the wall of the tower, glaring defiantly into the wind.  
  
James' hand found her own and Lily turned to see him standing next to her on the wall. She held out her other hand and he dropped his own will into it.  
  
She stared at the four pieces of parchment, and smiled to herself. It was so ironic, that they all had come up to the meeting willing and ready to die.  
  
The Marauders had always kept their promises to each other. Always! And it seemed as if the friends would rather die than be tempted into breaking that promise, from their own emotions.  
  
She turned to James and nodded, preparing herself to jump. What she wasn't prepared for was when James leaned over and stole one last sweet kiss. "I love you." He whispered, and then he jumped, pulling her with him.  
  
In that instant, everything changed, and Lily wanted to cry. The ground upon which her friends now lay dead, was rushing up to meet them.  
  
She didn't want to die anymore.  
  
Lily pulled James into her arms; and putting her mouth next to his ear whispered:  
  
"I love you too!"  
  
James smiled that sweet smile of his, and pulled her into another kiss as they hit the ground with a sickening crunch.  
  
That was how Dumbledore found them. Sirius laying half on top of Remus, and Lily and James in each others arms; with the friends' four Wills clutched in Lily's hand. All four had looks of complete peace on their faces.  
  
A garden full of blood red roses was planted where they had died; beneath the Astronomy Tower. Dumbledore himself placed a charm on the garden so that the roses bloomed all year long, and deep inside the garden were buried the four friends. Their graves were arranged in a square so that each could always be next to the 1 person that they loved and the person that loved them.  
  
Together for eternity.  
  
(*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)*)  
  
R & R! Ish my first little death ficlet, do you like it?  
  
Kitty Malfoy (^.^) 


End file.
